The invention generally relates to textile composites particularly useful in the formation of trim for seating in transportation vehicles. More specifically, the invention relates to textile composites which are useful as a replacement for the vinyl materials conventionally used in the manufacture of transportation vehicle seating and the like.
Transportation vehicles such as cars, trucks, etc., typically have seats which are covered with some form of durable material designed to withstand a variety of forces. The seats commonly include a platform (the part that the user contacts when he sits on the seat), the seat back (the part which faces the passenger sitting behind the seat), the skirt (the part which extends substantially vertically downward from the platform), and the sides, which connect all of the seat parts together. In most transportation vehicle seats, the primary emphasis is placed on the selection of the material for the platform, as this is the aesthetic focus of the seat within the vehicle.
Common materials for the platform of such vehicle seats include leather and cloth, such as woven fabrics, knit fabrics and the like. In the case of cloth seats, the fabrics used are typically selected to be heavy and highly decorative. Such decoration can be achieved through the use of a plurality of colored yarns, printing or dyeing of the materials, specific fabric constructions, pile surfaces, etc. Where woven fabrics are used to form the platform of the seat, they have typically included a heavy material (e.g. on the order of about 8.5 to 19.0 oz/sq yd) bonded to a polyurethane foam material, or a nonwoven backing formed from a wool/polyester or polypropylene/linen blend. Such backings are typically secured to the fabric layer by way of polyurethane adhesives.
The remaining portions of the vehicle seats are collectively referred to herein as the seating trim. Such items of vehicle seating are typically made from vinyl material, even where natural leather has been used to form the seat platform.
Some considerations that vehicle seating fabric manufacturers must take into account when designing the fabrics are the particular physical parameters which must be achieved. For example, automobile manufacturers typically require that fabrics (materials) used for their seats have high breaking and tear strength (typically on the order of about 270 N-489 N in each of the warp and fill directions when measured according to ASTM D 5034 and ASTM D 1117, respectively), and seam strengths of at least about 289 N-310 N, when tested according to Ford Laboratory Test Method (xe2x80x9cFLTMxe2x80x9d) BN 119-01.
Furthermore, it is typically desired for the materials to have stretch of at least about 4%xc3x974% (warpxc3x97fill for flat woven fabrics, and 5%xc3x975% for woven velour fabrics) when measured according to Society of Automotive Engineers Test Method SAE J855 and fog of greater than about 70 when tested according to FLTM BO 131-01. (As will be readily appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, the term xe2x80x9cfogxe2x80x9d refers to the amount of matter which would evaporate and build up on the interior of automobile glass as given off by the interior car components).
In addition, the materials must have at least minimal resistance to UV degradation, in order that they can withstand extended periods of direct sunlight. Furthermore, if the fabrics are formed from a plurality of laminated layers, they generally must have a lamination bond strength of at least about 12 N when tested according to FLTM BN 151-05 Method A. In addition, the performance characteristics of the platform materials must be retained throughout a wide range of temperatures and temperature changes, since vehicles can heat up rapidly in the sun and become extremely cold in response to frigid external temperatures.
As noted above, developments have heretofore typically been directed to perfecting the performance and appearance of seat platforms of transportation vehicles, while little attention has been paid to the vehicle trim. This is believed in part to be due to the ready availability, low cost, and adequate performance typically associated with commercially available vinyl trim materials.
One alternative which the assignee of the instant invention has developed for use as a vinyl replacement material is a woven fabric material having a polyurethane foam backing. As illustrated more fully in the examples below, the polyurethane-backed fabric had similar fog to vinyl, greater breaking strength, and good tear and seam strength.